TELANGANA : 'Majority X-ray & CT scan centres flout AERB norms'

Close to 90% of X-Ray and CT scan centres in the state do not abide by the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) norms, said experts from the Indian Radiological Imaging Association (IRMA) on Tuesday.Prabeerkumar Sikdar | TNN | July 29, 2015, 07:30 IST

According to data available with the local chapter of the IRMA, there are about 1,200 CT scan (of which 600 are located in Hyderabad) and 4,000 X-ray centres in Telangana that either operate independently or are attached to private/government hospitals. Of them, majority flout the AERB's radiation safety code, they added.

As reported in these columns on July 28, the AERB pulled the shutters down on over a dozen such centres in the city that were found violating its guidelines during a surprise inspection conducted recently.

"While the rules and regulations clearly state that these centres cannot operate out of commercial buildings, without necessary license from AERB, many of them are found flouting it. This is not just dangerous for the patients and technicians, but also for the common public who visit the buildings. They can get exposed to harmful radiation," said Dr T Narsinga Reddy, president of the Telangana chapter of IRMA.

Other rules such as using only barium-coated walls built out of nine-inch thick bricks and installing lead-shielded doors at these centres — all aimed at protecting people from the harmful radiations -- are also, most often, ignored.

"Children and pregnant women are most vulnerable to these radiations. Also, there are certain areas on the body like gonads and eyes, which are found to be very sensitive to radiation. Hence, technicians should take extra precautions -- like using radiation shields -- to prevent over-exposure," said Dr K R Muralidhar, Radiological Safety Officer (RSO) at the American Oncology Institute, Hyderabad.

In fact, to ensure that the radiations are within permissible limits, all X-ray and CT scan centres are expected to employ a RSO, as per the AERB safety code. This again, is vastly violated.

"Further, for them (workers including technicians and doctors in radiation department), the AERB mandates that they wear TLD (Thermo Luminicient Dosimeter) badges while using the CT scan and X-ray equipment as it helps detect the radiation levels. The RSO must ensure that all workers wear TLD without fail," added Dr Muralidhar.

However, sources said that barring over 30-40 select corporate hospitals in the city, most private hospitals and independent CT/ X-ray centres have no RSO on board, thereby leaving both patients and technicians working in such centres at high risk of contracting life-threatening aliments.

Sounding a word of caution, experts, therefore, advised people to check the credentials of a centre before setting foot inside one. "If one is not sure if CT scans/ X-ray equipment are AERB certified or not, they should find out if the centre has a quality certificate from agencies like the National Accreditation Board for Hospitals & Healthcare Providers (NABH). Since NABH quality control parameters are stringent, all such accredited hospitals are known to follow radiation norms," said Dr Siddartha Marda, emergency physician, Premier Hospital.

Meanwhile, admitting to all the loopholes existing in local CT/X-ray centres, Dr Reddy blamed the understaffed AERB for this serious concern. "They have recently started a web-based e-licensing system. Because of that, the body never bothers to visit a site before giving permissions. That is dangerous," he added.

There are about 1,200 CT scan (of which 600 are located in Hyderabad) and 4,000 X-ray centres in Telangana that either operate independently or are attached to private/government hospitals. Of them, majority flout the AERB's radiation safety code

While the rules clearly state that these centres cannot operate out of commercial buildings, without an AERB license, many of them are found violating it. This is dangerous for the patients, technicians and for the common public who visit the buildings

Other rules such as using only barium-coated walls built out of nine-inch thick bricks and installing lead-shielded doors at these centres — all aimed at protecting people from the harmful radiations -- are also, most often, ignored

Rules such as employing a Radiological Safety Officer or wearing a Thermo Luminicient Dosimeter badge while using the CT scan and X-ray equipment as it helps detect the radiation levels is openly flouted too

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